Improvement in refrigerators



UNITED STATES PATIENT" @time JAMES H. WIOKES, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

IMPROVEMENT IN REFRIGERATORS'.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 175,543, dated March 28, 1876; application filed March 15, 1876.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that L'JAMEs H. Wrcxns, of the city, county, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Refrigerators, which improvement is fully set forth in the following specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, in which- Figure 1 represents a horizontal section. Fig. 2 is a transverse vertical section.

Similar letters indicate corresponding parts.

This invention consists in the combination of a vertical partition with a fan-blower or other-"air-suction and air-forcing apparatus, and with the ice-reservoir and the provisionchamber of a refrigerator, said partition being made to terminate at some distance from the end or ends of the provision-chamber, so that the air ejected by the fan-blower is caused to pass through the ice-reservoir into that portion of the provision-chamber situated at one side of the partition, thence around the end or ends of said partition back to the blower, therebyr producing a constant circulation of air through the ice-reservoir and through all parts of the provision-chamber, the air, While being circulated, being nowhere confined Within a pipe except during its passage from the fan-blower to the ice-reservoir, and being entirelyr free, after having been cooled by contact with the ice, to permeate the provisions distributed throughout the provision-chamber.

In the drawing, the letter A designates the provision-chamber of my refrigerator, which is constructed with double walls and insulated against the influence of the external atmosphere in the best possible manner. In the interior of the provision-chamber is situated the ice-reservoir B, which is provided with apertures a, close to the bottom ofthe provision-chamber, and which is supplied with ice through a man-hole, b, in its top. A partition, C, serves to divide the provisionchamber A in two compartments. This partition extends from top to bottom of the chamber A; but at one or both ends of the same, spaces c are left, through which the two compartments of the chamber A communicate with each other. The ice-reservoir B is situated on one side of the partition C,

and on the opposite side of said partition is 'situated a fan-blower, D, or any other air-v forcing and suction apparatus. The dischargespout of this fan-blower extends through the partition C, and communicates by means of a pipe, e, with an air-distributer, E, which is situated in the lower part of the ice-reservoir, and which consists of a foraminous box of sheet metal or other suitable material, by means of which the air injected through the pipe c is divided in a large number of small jets. s

The suction-opening of the fan-blower is provided with a bell-shaped mouth, f. It' the fan-blower is set in motion it draws in the air from the provision-chamber, and injects the same through the air-distributer E into the ice-reservoir, where the same is cooled by contact with the ice, and whence it escapes through the apertures. ct into the compartment on one side ofthe partition C, and after having permeated this compartment, the air passes through the spaces c into the compartments on the opposite side of said partition, whence it is again sucked in by the fan-blower, as indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1..

By this arrangement the air in its circulation through the provision-chamber is left entirely free to permeate all parts of said chamber, and no pipes are needed to produce the required circulation.

In the example shown by the drawing the ice-reservoir is situated in the middle of the partition C, and open spaces are left at both ends of said. partition. If desired, the partition may be made to close up against one end of the provision-chamber; and in this case the ice-reservoir and the fan-blower will be placed near the closed end. The partition may be made movable.

This improvement is applicable to refrigerators ofallki-nds, such as refrigerator-rooms or refrigerator-cars.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

In a refrigerator-chamber, a vertical partition, C, dividing the chamber into two preserving-compartments, and having an airpassage, c, at either or both of its ends, in combination with an air drawing and forcing device, D, in one compartment, and an icehave hereuntoset my handvandseal this 17th reservoir in the other compartment, whereby day of February, 1876.

the air of the chamber is passed iu av lateral circuit through both compartments and JAMES H. WICKES. [L. S.] 4 through the intermediate retrigerating agent, Witnesses: l substantially as described. W. HAUFF,

In testimony that I claim the foregoing I' E. F. KASTENHUBER. 

